It is our right to live our life as per our wish, and we live our life as per our wish. We don’t care if other people scold us when we drink alcohol, since it becomes our right. We enjoy our rights freely and openly to some extent. Social factors sometimes create obstacles at the time of utilising our right. Like society may criticise sex before marriage, but people still do it saying it is their right.
I saw a young lady who seemed as if she had just completed her teens in a white sari. Now, when we can even go against social norms in the name of our rights, what is her right? Is staying a widow throughout her life her right? I could not utter a word in front of her, and instead decided to write about it. Yes, socially she is correct! But how correct is she when we look at it from a broader perspective? How wise are her parents, parents-in-law and society for her?
Truly, we still lack social provisions for widow marriage. When a wife dies, no husband goes through such an idiotic process. But when a husband dies, it’s like the wife is getting punished as if she has killed him. Why should she wear a white dress throughout her life?
People have made drinking, which is completely against social norms, an accepted practice. Isn’t that enough to prove that people have the power to change social norms? It is we human beings who make society and create the social norms in our society. When we human beings are able to modify our cultural norms, why are we lagging behind on this issue?
Every widow should be allowed to marry again as per her wish. Immense criticism will follow even if she talks to some young man! And we are proud of our society! It is we who have to design our society. There are still various stupid provisions like that in our society. It may take time, for sure, but let’s make an attempt to remove such irritating provisions. Let our society be good, and let our upcoming generations praise us for the decisions we make. Let’s at least talk with their parents if she is a widow! Let us pressurise her parents to get her married! Let us make a contribution through our voice and make use of our right to speech!
PUBLISHED IN THE KATHMANDU POST JULY 18, 2011
I saw a young lady who seemed as if she had just completed her teens in a white sari. Now, when we can even go against social norms in the name of our rights, what is her right? Is staying a widow throughout her life her right? I could not utter a word in front of her, and instead decided to write about it. Yes, socially she is correct! But how correct is she when we look at it from a broader perspective? How wise are her parents, parents-in-law and society for her?
Truly, we still lack social provisions for widow marriage. When a wife dies, no husband goes through such an idiotic process. But when a husband dies, it’s like the wife is getting punished as if she has killed him. Why should she wear a white dress throughout her life?
People have made drinking, which is completely against social norms, an accepted practice. Isn’t that enough to prove that people have the power to change social norms? It is we human beings who make society and create the social norms in our society. When we human beings are able to modify our cultural norms, why are we lagging behind on this issue?
Every widow should be allowed to marry again as per her wish. Immense criticism will follow even if she talks to some young man! And we are proud of our society! It is we who have to design our society. There are still various stupid provisions like that in our society. It may take time, for sure, but let’s make an attempt to remove such irritating provisions. Let our society be good, and let our upcoming generations praise us for the decisions we make. Let’s at least talk with their parents if she is a widow! Let us pressurise her parents to get her married! Let us make a contribution through our voice and make use of our right to speech!
PUBLISHED IN THE KATHMANDU POST JULY 18, 2011
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